FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE- May 16, 2012
2012-05-08 - OTHER
Saskatoon - The University of Saskatchewan Board of Governors has approved a $453 million detailed operating budget for 2012-13 and a strategy to permanently reduce university expenses by $44.5 million by 2016. This includes one-time and permanent reductions of $9.5 million and $6 million in measures yet to be identified for a total of $15.5 million in 2012-13.

University CommunicationsMay 16, 2012 7:37 AM

Speaking about the university's strategy to deal with the long-term financial situation during a May 16 university town hall, Greg Fowler, acting vice-president finance and resources, said university officials considered a number of scenarios "and all require significantly reducing expenditures in a comprehensive way through to 2016, the end of the current planning cycle. The university is facing limits on operating funding and must adjust its expenses accordingly."
"We have approved the university's 2012-13 detailed operating budget and a longer-term budget adjustment strategy and are now providing management with a clear direction to implement a set of budget adjustments to address the university's financial challenges and pressures in a sustainable manner," said Nancy Hopkins, chair of the Board of Governors.
Brett Fairbairn, provost and vice-president academic, said the budget adjustment strategy groups potential actions into two administrative and two academic categories, or quadrants, which collectively will permanently reduce the university's expenses by $44.5 million across the university and its colleges and units by 2016.
"Project teams will be assembled to review a range of expense reduction ideas submitted by university faculty, staff, students and alumni and to make recommendations for actions within each quadrant for consideration by the Provost's Committee on Integrated Planning and, ultimately, by the Board of Governors," explained Fairbairn.
Fairbairn added the university recognizes that, despite the size of its financial challenges, some investments must be made to achieve long-term, sustainable solutions.
"No single action will correct the financial pressures we face this year or throughout the planning cycle, so we must make multi-pronged changes in a measured and deliberate manner," said Fairbairn.
The university will reduce its expenses between $9 million and $13.5 million annually for the next four years to a total of $44.5 million by 2016.
For more information, visit http://www.usask.ca/finances.
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For more information, contact:
Mark Ferguson, University Communications
University of Saskatchewan
(306) 966-1851
m.ferguson@usask.ca